Foldable and transportable home

ABSTRACT

A foldable and transportable home having two sidewalls and end walls forming a body, with the two end walls having an upper and lower portion. The upper portion is hinged to the lower portion and is triangular in shape and folds inwardly and downwardly. The roof includes two lower and two upper roof sections forming a gable configuration, with one of the two upper sections hinged on one side to one lower roof section, the two upper sections being hinged together to fold downwardly over the other lower roof section. The body is removably mounted on a frame and undercarriage for transporting the home and forming a temporary base for the unit.

ilnited States in Primary Examiner-Philip Goodman Attorneys--Hobbs &Green and Kemon and Palmer &

Estabrook ABSTRACT: A foldable and transportable home having twosidewalls and end walls forming a body, with the two end walls having anupper and lower portion. The upper portion is hinged to the lowerportion and is triangular in shape and folds inwardly and downwardly.The roof includes two lower and two upper roof sections forming a gableconfiguration, with one of the two upper sections hinged on one side toone lower roof section, the two upper sections being hinged together tofold downwardly over the other lower roof section. The body is removablymounted on a frame and undercarriage for transporting the home andforming a temporary base for the unit.

PATENTIEDNHVZ Ian 3,617,086

SHEET 10F 4 '5- 3 INVILNIORS ROGER A. KING 4 By KEITH 0. BURTONATTORNEYS PATENTEnuuva 19?: 3,617. 086

sum 28F 4 INVIiN'l HRS ROGER A. KING KEITH 0. BURTON WWW,

ATTORNEYS PAIENTEmmY 2 I971 3, 51 7, 0 a 5 saw u or 4 INVIJINI'URS ROGERA. KING 4 lfE/TH 0. BURTON FOLDABLE AND TRANSPORTABLIE HOME The trend inmobile homes has been primarily to construct them larger in both lengthand width and to include tip-out sections and in some instances to makethem expandable. In most of these prior attempts to provide increasedliving space, the basic design and appearance have been that of atrailer or similar vehicle, with the final lines or silhouetteresembling the conventional trailer on which only refinements have beengenerally made. These vehicles rarely have the appearance of aconventional home, and notwithstanding the fact that the vehicles areused most of the time as permanent structures at fixed locations, littleconsideration has been given to design and construction which have theappearance of a conventional home in a natural setting. The vehicletrailers appearance is particularly noticeable and equally unattractiveand unsightly when the mobile home is placed in a natural setting of aconventional home, and there is little improvement in the generalappearance even in modern mobile home parks. The vehicular appearancehas been maintained primarily in order to render the vehicle suitablefor movement on highways and streets consistent with normal traffic flowpatterns, even though the vehicle will rarely be transported and willusually be mounted on a stationary understructure at a home site, andthereafter used as a normal home for extended periods of time or for therest of the life of the vehicle. In the attempts which have been made tomake the mobile home expandable into large structures, the structuresstill resemble vehicular configuration. It is therefore one of theprincipal objects of the present invention to provide a foldable andtransportable home, which has the distinct appearance of a conventionalhome, lodge or cottage, yet which can be folded into a compact structureand moved conveniently on a highway as a normal trailer or conventionalmobile home.

Another object of the invention is to provide a home or house which,when unfolded, has the appearance of an attractive lodge usable as aconventional home, and which is normally mounted on an undercarriage topermit it to be moved easily from place to place after it has beenfolded with furniture, clothes and other living appurtenances containedtherein.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a foldable andtransportable home of the aforementioned type, which will fold into asize which can readily be maneuvered into various positions and easilybe towed by an automobile or truck and thereafter used on theundercarriage or mounted on a permanent foundation or other suitableunderstructure.

A further object is to provide a foldable home which is, in effect, atwo-story structure when in its unfolded condition, and which will foldinto a structure which can be transported on conventional highways withno interference from standard overpasses, and which can be folded andunfolded in a short period of time by one man with the use of onlysimple equipment and tools.

Additional objects and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent from the following description and accompanying drawings,wherein:

FIG. 1 is an end elevational view of the present foldable andtransportable home;

FIG. 2 is an elevational view of one of the sides of the present home,showing the home in its unfolded position;

FIG. 3 is an elevational view of the end opposite that shown in FIG. 1,showing the foldable and transportable home in its folded position;

FIG. 4 is an elevational view of the side opposite that shown in FIG. 2,showing the home in its folded position;

FIG. 5 is a vertical cross-sectional view, taken on line 5-5 of FIG. 2,of the present foldable home with projected portions shown in order tobetter illustrate the internal construction of the home structure;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary section taken on line 6-6 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken on line 7-7ofFIG. 2;

FIG. 8 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-sectional view taken along thehinge line of the roof section opposite that shown in FIG. 4, showingthe roof extended instead of folded as in the previous figure, thesection being taken on line 8-8 of FIG. 4; and

FIG. 9 is an enlarged fragmentary view taken on line 9-9 of FIG. 5.

Referring more specifically to the drawings, numeral 10 designatesgenerally the foldable and transportable home, numeral 12 the bodystructure of the home, and 14 the undercarriage of the home. Theundercarriage structure shown in the drawings may be consideredconventional, having side frame members and wheels 16 and 18 joumaled onan axle (not shown). The frame extends forwardly from the body of thehome and is normally provided with a fixture 20 constituting a part of ahitch for connecting the home to a towing vehicle. The frame is retainedin a horizontal position when disconnected from a towing vehicle by ajack or support 22 connected to the forward end of the frame and restingon the ground or pavement. Since the undercarriage structure isconsidered to be conventional for the purpose of the presentdescription, it will not be described in detail herein.

The body of the home consists essentially of front and rear ends 30 and32, sides 34 and 36, and roof sections 40 and 42 on one side andsections 44 and 46 on the opposite side. The forward and rear ends areessentially the same in construction, and the section and cutawaydrawing of FIG. 5 illustrates the construction of both ends; however,the one shown in the figure is the rear end. Each end consists of alower section 30a and an upper section 30b, hinged to the upper edge ofthe lower section 30a and adapted to swing inwardly in the mannerillustrated in FIG. 3, from the vertical position to a substantiallyhorizontal position. The ends include framing 50 and 52 for a door, andframing 55, 56 and 57 for a window, the beam 58 forming the upper partof the door and window. Studding 60 and 62 both below and above thewindow are conventional in structure and are connected to transverserunners 64 and 66 for studding 60 and runners 68 and 70 for studding 62.The upper portion 30b is a triangular shape and is connected to theupper edge of section 300 by a hinge. It consists of side frame members82 and 84, window frames 86, and 92 and studding 94 between framemembers 90 and 96, and window 98, which is enclosed by the windowframes, is adapted to open inwardly.

One of the particular features of the present invention is theconstruction of the sides which makes it possible to support therelatively large foldable roof structure, the side frames consisting ofa plurality of studs along each side and lower and upper framing 102 and104, each framing forming a plu- 'rality of spaced studding connected atthe bottom to the floor structure 106 and at the top to horizontal framemembers shown in broken lines at numeral 110 in FIG. 2. The upper partof framing 102 is joined to the lower part of 104, thus forming atriangular stud with member 100 to form a firm sup port for the roof.Studding 100 and framing 102 are connected to a plate 111 along eachside, which in turn is connected to the floor structure. Theconstruction of the floor may be considered conventional for the purposeof this description and is normally supported directly on the frame ofthe undercarriage. Both the lower and the upper sections of the two endsare covered by suitable weather sheeting material such as aluminum orboards, the material shown in the drawings being in vertical positionand joined together by a series of joints. The siding likewise ispreferably of the same construction.

Both ends preferably contain a door and windows I22 and 124. The windowsare slidable to permit one or both to be opened. Various other door andwindow arrangements may be used to satisfy the requirements and toprovide variations in design. A window 126 is provided in the uppersection 30b of each end and is preferably opened by hinge structure 128at the lower edge thereof, thus permitting the window to tilt inwardlywhen it is opened.

Sections 40 and 44 of the roof are rigidly connected to end portions 30aand edge 34 and 36, thus forming a rigid basic structure with the sidesand end walls of a size substantially the same as a normal mobile homeor trailer structure. Roof section 42 is connected at its lower edge toroof section 40 by a piano hinge or other suitable hinge means 138 alongjoint 140, and section 46 is connected to the upper edge of section 42by a piano hinge or other suitable hinge means 142. The hinge meanspermits sections 42 and 46 to assume a gable or triangularconfiguration, as shown in FIG. 1, and likewise permits section 42 tofold downwardly to a horizontal position and section 46 to extenddownwardly along one side of the body. The hinge means 142 is enclosedwith a vinyl sealing member 144 forming a watertight seal between thetwo sections when the sections are either in the unfolded position asshown in FIG. 1 or in the folded position of FIG. 3. The roof sectionsmay be covered by any suitable material such as sheeting and shingles145 or aluminum sheet or panel material, to give the desired weatherprotection and authentic lodge or cottage appearance. The roof sectionsare shown as having a finishing strip of facework 148 which gives thehome an appearance of a lodge or cottage such as would be used in acamping or vacation home.

When sections 42 and 46 are in their upright positions, as illustratedin FIG. 1, the lower ege of section 46 is clamped, bolted or otherwisesecured to the upper edge of section 44 or to adjacent body framing inorder to provide a rigid structure. The end sections 30b are then swungupwardly into the positions illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2 and 5. Whensections 42 and 46 are in their folded position, section 46 is heldfirmly along the side of the body by one or more hooks 150 connected tothe base of the body. These hooks are preferably removed from theexternal surface when the roof sections are uprighted; however, they maybe folded in along the side if desired.

The home may be heated by any suitable means, such as a gas or electricheater, or by a fireplace or a stove, vented to a chimney 160. Thechimney, which is shown as a metal pipe, extends through roof section 40and is removed when the roof section is folded downwardly from theposition shown in FIG. 1 to the position shown in FIG. 3 preparatory totransporting the home. The chimney and toilet vent pipe 161 wouldnormally extend through the roof of section 40, which is not enclosed bysection 46 when the unit is folded.

When the roof sections 42 and 46 are in their elevated position and thetwo end sections 30b are in their vertical positions, a room which isnormally used as a bedroom is provided in one end, as illustrated bybroken line 162 and by the offset elevational portion 164. One or morebunk beds 166 may be permanently installed in the elevated section whichwould normally be reached by a ladder; however, a staircase may be usedif desired. Various arrangements of the rooms and compartments,including the kitchen, bathroom and bedrooms, may be made to satisfyrequirements. A porch 167 having railings 168 and 170 may be provided ifdesired, and it may be mounted on the forwardly projecting portion 172of the vehicle frame. The porch may also be made larger than theforwardly projecting portion and, if so, it would be foldable to permitthe transportable home to be easily connected to the towing vehicle. Asimilar porch may be provided at the rear, or steps may be used at therear door.

The manner in which the present foldable and transportable home ismanipulated and used is apparent from the foregoing description,however, when the home is to be moved, the chimney 160 is removed andthe two ends 3012 are folded inwardly to the horizontal position asillustrated in FIG. 2. Thereafter roof sections 42 and 46 are foldedfrom the position shown in FIG. 1 to the position shown in FIG. 2, andthe lower end of section 46 is secured firmly in place by hooks 150. Itshould be noted that the projecting part of roof section 46 is on theright-hand side of the vehicle so that the overhang in excess of that onthe opposite side, is less of a traffic hazard than it would be if itwere on the left-hand side. After the unit has been transported to thedesired location, if the location is to be permanent, the home may beremoved from the undercarriage and placed on a permanent foundation. ifit is only to be used temporarily at the location, it would normallyremain on the undercarriage as illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2, and 3. Whenthe home has been moved to the new location, the two sections 42 and 46are elevated to their upright position and the ends 30b are moved fromhorizontal to vertical position and locked in place by any suitablelatching means. After chimney has been reinstalled, the unit is readyfor occupancy with the furniture and appliances having remained in placein the unit throughout the transporting operation. When sections 42 and46 are in their folded position, the unit is compact and occupies onlythe normal space of a conventional trailer or mobile home of moderatesize.

While only one embodiment of the present foldable and transportable homehas been described in detail herein, various changes and modificationsmay be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

We claim:

1. A foldable and transportable home comprising two end walls and twosidewalls forming a body, each of said end walls having a lower portionand an upper portion hinged to the upper edge of said lower portion tofold inwardly into said body and being generally of a triangular shape,a roof structure having four longitudinal sections, one of said sectionsbeing mounted along one side of said body and having a lower and anupper edge, a second section being hinged at its lower edge to the upperedge of said one section, a third section being hinged at its upper edgeto the upper edge of said second section, hinge means connecting saidfirst, second and third sections together in both the folded andunfolded positions of said roof structure, a fourth section beingmounted along the other side of said body, and means for releasablyconnecting the lower edge of said third section to the upper edge ofsaid fourth section to retain said second and third sections in atriangular configuration embracing the upper portion of said end wallsand to permit said second section to fold downwardly when said upperportions are folded inwardly and simultaneously to permit said thirdsection to move downwardly along the outside of said fourth section.

2. A foldable and transportable home as defined in claim 1 in which saidbody is mounted on a frame and said frame is supported by anundercarriage including two wheels for transporting said home.

3. A foldable and transportable home as defined in claim 2 in which saidframe projects forwardly beyond said body and a porchlike structure ismounted on said frame.

4. A foldable and transportable home as defined in claim 1 in whichpartitions divide the internal space of said body into a lowercompartment and an upper compartment and said upper compartmentcorresponds generally in shape to the upper portion of the two endwalls.

5. A foldable and transportable home as defined in claim 4 in which oneof said end walls includes a door and window in the lower portion and awindow in the upper portion.

6. A foldable and transportable home as defined in claim 1 in which eachof said end walls contains a door and window in the lower portion and awindow in the upper portion.

7. A foldable and transportable home as defined in claim 4 in which eachof said end walls contains a door and window in the lower portion and awindow in the upper portion.

8. A foldable and transportable home as defined in claim 1 in which saidsidewalls are constructed of studding forming a generally triangularstructure in vertically arranged position and said sidewalls projectoutwardly and upwardly and are connected respectively to said one andsaid fourth roof sections.

9. A foldable and transportable home as defined in claim 4 in which saidsidewalls are constructed of studding forming a generally triangularstructure in vertically arranged position and said sidewalls projectoutwardly and upwardly and are connected respectively to said one andsaid fourth roof sec tions.

10. A foldable and transportable home as defined in claim 2 in whichsaid third roof section folds downwardly over said fourth roof sectionand in which said fourth roof section is on the right-hand side of saidbody as positioned on said frame and undercarriage.

11. In a foldable and transportable home having two end walls and twosidewalls forming a body, each of said end walls having a lower portionand an upper portion hinged to the upper edge of said lower portion tofold inwardly into said body and being generally of a triangular shape:a roof structure including four longitudinal sections, one of said roofsections being disposed along one side of said body and having a lowerand an upper edge, a second roof section being hinged at its lower edgeto the upper edge of said one section, a third roof section beingconnected to the upper edge of said second section, hinge meansconnecting said first, second and third sections together in both thefolded and unfolded positions of said roof structure, a fourth roofsection being disposed along the other side of said body, and means forreleasably connecting an edge of said third section to the upper edge ofsaid fourth section to retain two adjoining roof sections in atriangular configuration embracing the upper portion of said end wallsand to permit said second section to fold downwardly when said upperportions are folded inwardly, and simultaneously to permit said thirdsection to move downwardly with respect to said second section whileattached to said second section.

12. A foldable and transportable home as defined in claim 11 in whichsaid frame projects forwardly beyond said body and a porchlike structureis mounted on said frame.

13. A foldable and transportable home as defined in claim 11 in whichpartitions divide the internal space of said body into a lowercompartment and an upper compartment and said upper compartmentcorresponds generally in shape to the.

upper portion of the two end walls.

14. A foldable and transportable home as defined in claim 11 in whichone of said end walls includes a door and window in the lower portionand a window in the upper portion.

0 i t t a:

1. A foldable and transportable home comprising two end walls and twosidewalls forming a body, each of said end walls having a lower portionand an upper portion hinged to the upper edge of said lower portion tofold inwardly into said body and being generally of a triangular shape,a roof structure having four longitudinal sections, one of said sectionsbeing mounted along one side of said body and having a lower and anupper edge, a second section being hinged at its lower edge to the upperedge of said one section, a third section being hinged at its upper edgeto the upper edge of said second section, hinge means connecting saidfirst, second and third sections together in both the folded andunfolded positions of said roof structure, a fourth section beingmounted along the other side of said body, and means for releasablyconnecting the lower edge of said third section to the upper edge ofsaid fourth section to retain said second and third sections in atriangular configuration embracing the upper portion of said end wallsand to permit said second section to fold downwardly wHen said upperportions are folded inwardly and simultaneously to permit said thirdsection to move downwardly along the outside of said fourth section. 2.A foldable and transportable home as defined in claim 1 in which saidbody is mounted on a frame and said frame is supported by anundercarriage including two wheels for transporting said home.
 3. Afoldable and transportable home as defined in claim 2 in which saidframe projects forwardly beyond said body and a porchlike structure ismounted on said frame.
 4. A foldable and transportable home as definedin claim 1 in which partitions divide the internal space of said bodyinto a lower compartment and an upper compartment and said uppercompartment corresponds generally in shape to the upper portion of thetwo end walls.
 5. A foldable and transportable home as defined in claim4 in which one of said end walls includes a door and window in the lowerportion and a window in the upper portion.
 6. A foldable andtransportable home as defined in claim 1 in which each of said end wallscontains a door and window in the lower portion and a window in theupper portion.
 7. A foldable and transportable home as defined in claim4 in which each of said end walls contains a door and window in thelower portion and a window in the upper portion.
 8. A foldable andtransportable home as defined in claim 1 in which said sidewalls areconstructed of studding forming a generally triangular structure invertically arranged position and said sidewalls project outwardly andupwardly and are connected respectively to said one and said fourth roofsections.
 9. A foldable and transportable home as defined in claim 4 inwhich said sidewalls are constructed of studding forming a generallytriangular structure in vertically arranged position and said sidewallsproject outwardly and upwardly and are connected respectively to saidone and said fourth roof sections.
 10. A foldable and transportable homeas defined in claim 2 in which said third roof section folds downwardlyover said fourth roof section and in which said fourth roof section ison the right-hand side of said body as positioned on said frame andundercarriage.
 11. In a foldable and transportable home having two endwalls and two sidewalls forming a body, each of said end walls having alower portion and an upper portion hinged to the upper edge of saidlower portion to fold inwardly into said body and being generally of atriangular shape: a roof structure including four longitudinal sections,one of said roof sections being disposed along one side of said body andhaving a lower and an upper edge, a second roof section being hinged atits lower edge to the upper edge of said one section, a third roofsection being connected to the upper edge of said second section, hingemeans connecting said first, second and third sections together in boththe folded and unfolded positions of said roof structure, a fourth roofsection being disposed along the other side of said body, and means forreleasably connecting an edge of said third section to the upper edge ofsaid fourth section to retain two adjoining roof sections in atriangular configuration embracing the upper portion of said end wallsand to permit said second section to fold downwardly when said upperportions are folded inwardly, and simultaneously to permit said thirdsection to move downwardly with respect to said second section whileattached to said second section.
 12. A foldable and transportable homeas defined in claim 11 in which said frame projects forwardly beyondsaid body and a porchlike structure is mounted on said frame.
 13. Afoldable and transportable home as defined in claim 11 in whichpartitions divide the internal space of said body into a lowercompartment and an upper compartment and said upper compartmentcorresponds generally in shape to the upper portion of the two endwalls.
 14. A foldable and transportable home as defined in claim 11 inwhich one of said end walls incLudes a door and window in the lowerportion and a window in the upper portion.